Sushi Focaccia Scarf
More celestial spectacles. A good summer recipe. Desert Funk.
Lake Lights
Continuing 2024’s remarkable streak of wondrous natural spectacles, the Northern Lights made an extremely rare appearance into southern latitudes this month. According to some online aurora trackers, these things seem to swirl around the globe in various intervals, and some friends and I waited it out along the southern shores of Lake Michigan where there is little light pollution. For a couple hours nothing seemed to change with the night sky. But eventually, a faint greenish haze started to appear in a direction across the lake which is normally jet black. Low and behold, the aurora borealis crept ever closer our way. All in all, it lasted about 20 or 30 minutes from beginning to end, like a passing thunderstorm. But this one was silent, florescent, and ever-shifting. There were waves and rising streaks of purple, maroon, teal and chartreuse. The camera picked up the colors in dramatic effect, but even with the naked eye this was a shocking and heavenly sight.
If you are into these sorts of celestial events, a planetary alignment is taking place June 3, 2024 where six planets will all be visible in a row with the naked eye— Jupiter, Mercury, Uranus, Mars, Neptune and Saturn.
If you’re looking for a new podcast…
I can’t stop listening to the nerdy but fascinating podcast called “Acquired” which tells incredibly detailed back stories of many of the world’s most famous companies like Apple, Nike, Porsche, and Nintendo. Each episode plays out somewhat like an elaborate book report of key players, pivotal decisions, and business practices that affect each company’s standing in the world today. The hosts go super deep with the details which are fascinating and revealing. Who knew some of the NBA’s global success today can be attributed to the fact that YMCAs have been in China since the 1800s? And the one about Hermes is incredible for how it unpacks how this brand has acted contrary to nearly every established marketing practice in its way to becoming one of the premier luxury brands on the planet.
Skatepark Scarf
Speaking of Hermes, now that I know that every scarf they make is hand made by a fleet of various artisans and master craftsmen, offered for a limited time, and takes at least two years to plan and manufacture, it is even cooler to learn that one of my favorite artist/designers, Geoff McFetridge, has been tapped to create art for a Hermes scarf. This one features amazing artwork of a skateboard park:
Salmon Crispy Rice Cake
My wife and I ping each other when a good looking recipe pops up in our Instagram feeds. Jen forwarded this one by @sivanskitchen my way and it was mind blowing. It had all the flavors of sushi but presented more like focaccia. We don’t do a lot of fish on our own but this thing looked so good and the weather was so nice that it just felt like the right thing to do. I found it relatively easy to pull off, and thanks to the colorful mix of avocado, red onion, cilantro, serrano pepper, spicy mayo and sesame seeds, the presentation was awesome. Even the teens liked it!
Lists: Ways to Describe the Khruangbin Sound
Khruangbin is a band that has a distinctive sound that sounds like it is new and old and familiar and exotic and exciting and chill all at the same time, and it is hard to describe their genre of music exactly. Here are some attempts at doing so:
• 70s Psychadelic Surf Funk
• Thai-Tex-Mex-Indie-Funk-Fire
• New Mood
• Neo-Funk
• World Groove
• Pulp Fiction on Acid
• Hip Speakeasy Elevator
• Psychedelic lounge dub
• Desert Surf Rock
• Don Draper’s Living Room
Recent Listens: Helado Negro
Here’s an intriguing artist I came across that has Khruangbin vibes, but isn’t Khruangbin.
My Khruangbin: “Flip-flops and Slipper Party”